Guided Tours, Family Encounters & Crazy, Crazy Futbol!!

An arty type shot from a bar in Buenos.

The alarms went off at a time in Buenos that Ric or I had yet to encounter - in the am!! We were out front @ 1030 to meet Caro & she once again had hired a car & driver to chauffer us around!! Both Ric & I were quite thirsty - not hungover, thirsty - and were grateful when Caro stopped at the historical, Café Tortoni. Apparently, a lot of important decisions have been made in this café by government figures over the years. Also, many major business partnerships & deals have been forged. The font & café logo were also stolen by Tango Fire and liberally used as the glass gobo (pattern) in Act 1 that we project..!!

A bottle of water was placed on our table & both Ric & I wanted the whole thing to ourselves!! We were parched & it was another reasonably warm day with no air con in the car!! Tortoni was a cool little experience & one I would have missed if Caro hadn’t been with us. She then drove (well, the guy did) us around to a variety of markets that were interesting. A couple were definitely designed for tourists but it was still interesting to hear other tango music being played live. I even picked a couple of pieces we use in the show, much to Caro’s impressed looks!! There were also tango dancing exhibitions on pretty much every corner & I almost convinced Ric to have his photo with one of the girls in a tango stance!!

Cafe Tortoni then Ric & I out the front of Boca Jr Stadium.

We briefly visited Boca Jr Stadium (one of the teams we were to watch later on in the day) before heading down along the river to have some lunch. It was a fairly similar set-up to Melbourne’s Southbank but also resembled Docklands in parts. We dined at a great restaurant, where I decided once again to delve into the world of Argentine BBQ meats. I ordered a ribeye steak, a sprite & some water - all in Spanish: Puedo oju de bief, gaseosso sprite y aqua por for vour! Ric also ordered in Spanish, as did the driver & then we all wet ourselves when Caro ordered - IN ENGLISH - and the waiter asked her “Que?” - what..? She was slightly embarrassed but it was very funny!! The steak surpassed the one had the other day. It was a little bloody & still slightly raw - which was fine with me & Caro kept asking if I wanted it sent back..!! It was beautifully cooked & I could feel the iron & protein coursing thru my veins with every bite!!

Before getting dropped off at Pablo’s we went to a CD store. Caro wanted to buy me a CD & also another one for Dan that they’d been discussing. I also took the opportunity to buy a couple of CD’s by Argentine band Dividos. Christan had put me onto them over our many discussions and they’re rocky but also slip into your Robbie Williams esque ballads.

Ric striking a pose in a bar - I was trying to be arty!!

We were dropped off @ Pablo’s where he supplied us with this biscuity/cake thing. It was all held together with this carmel/coffee margarine paste that you generally had on cold toast at café’s. I can’t remember the name of the spread but it’s sickly sweet & actually quite nice. After stating to Pablo that I’d eaten it at a café & enjoyed it, the cake form of it kept appearing throughout our time with him!! Pablo’s dad came and drove us the 45mins to La Plata where the game was to be played. It was a great journey to get to see more of Argentina and we all chatted together or Ric & I chatted along whilst Pablo & his dad conversed. Pablo’s dad didn’t speak a great deal of English but we were able to speak to him - which was Gold!!

When we got there, we were dropped off at Pablo’s brothers house. Maxie was great - a slightly older version of Pablo but with the same sense of humour!! When Maxie greeted us he greeted Pablo with an insultive greeting, said tongue in cheek, to which I laughed, much to the shock of Maxie!! It was a nice little ice breaker & set the mood whilst we sat back. Maxie seemed a little shocked that I understood what he’d called Pablo!! We sat back and had a beer & watched the Argentine version of ‘The Footy Show’ and chatted back & forth.

Enjoying a cafe con crema!

An add came on the TV & despite not fully understanding it, you could tell it was an add for Alcoholics Anonymous. Pablo made a joke that I didn’t need to join as I wasn’t being secretive about being an alcoholic…! It was very funny but leads me to a point I feel I need to raise. A few people have commented on the fact that all Dan & I seem to do whilst on Tour is drink. That’s not true - majority of the adventures you read here do involve a beverage but there are many days when we pack up the show, have a knock off (of the ‘matter a fact, I got it now’ variety) & hit the sack. I don’t write about those, well they’re not adventures, hence why they’re not covered in this otherwise, highly insightful window into life on the road!! Yes there are days when we hop on the bus hungover but they are Travel Days, where all we have to do is sit on the bus or a plane for 6-10hrs. It is the nights before these days where we are truly able to actually have a night off, no 12hr day the next day, no show, no deadlines, no audience waiting to come in. Despite not having any, it’s nice to let one’s hair down every now & then cause if it was all work & no play, I wouldn't be here!! *

* The above isn’t written in angry tone (which is the one thing I hate about written correspondence, you just can never be 100% sure of the tone behind it!), it’s just another one of those tangent moments that hit you when writing up an entry!!

Well, after hanging out with Maxie, his wife & their hilarious 2yo son - who was amazed by the fact that Ric & I had no hair, Maxie drove us to the Stadium. There are passionate fans etc. in regards to Australian Sports but in Argentina, one side’s supporters entered one side of the ground & the other team from the other side!! It was intense! We passed approx 5 Security checkpoints on the way to our seats. Myself & Ric copped some weird looks as we shuffled along with the crowd - two shaved whitey’s amidst a sea of olive skin & black hair!! The chants that the crowd all seemed to know were amazing. A lone voice would start & by about the 3rd word, majority of the crowd around were jumping, waving fists in the air & joining in the chorus - and this was just in the line to get in!!

Pondering my next selection from the bar!

There were policia everywhere but most noticeable were the ones in riot gear, separating the two ‘sides’ of spectators. It wasn’t just a ‘for show’ presence, oh no. There were two rows of fully suited up officers, followed by two whole bays of seating (think Bay 13 MCG size), then another row of armoured officers, then another 2 bays & then yet another 2 rows of officers & the other spectators began!! ‘Spirited Conversation’ between spectators must be common place for Ric noticed that to get to the field from the seating banks, you had to, literally, jump across a wide moat, that was quite deep & ran the entire circumference of the pitch. There was also no a drop of alochol either permitted into or for sale in the stadium.

Giz lapping up the atmosphere in La Plata Stadium.


The game itself was quite an experience. Us Westerners have seen countless hours of footage of crowds at football matches and have an idea that it is loud, that the supporters are passionate & that it is fast paced - you have no idea!! The chants that we’d heard in the queue to get in were doubled in effort & by number. This time there were also drums & whistles added. There also appeared to be choreography that involved the waving of arms and flags. It was quite an amazing atmosphere and all created by just under 30,000 people. Easily outdid any MCG crowd I’ve been a part of that can be up to 3 times larger!!

It was also a game of pure passion as there was no scoreboards of any kind in the stadium - let alone digital ones that could offer instant replays. If you weren’t watching & something happened, bad luck!! I think that this only added to the excitement of the spectators. Boca Jr ended up winning 2-1 over Gymnasium but it could easily have been around 5-1 as Boca hit the post 3 times!! After the game, we & the other Gymnasium fans were kept inside the ground for around 40mins whilst all the Boca Jr fans exited & had time to get to their cars and depart… I hate to think what would have happened if we’d all been seated together!!

Ric & I enjoying the game.

It was an unforgettable evening & a great way to cap off our Argentine experience. Ric has already started considering coming & meeting Tango Fire on tour somewhere else along the line over the next year or so. The first destination possibly being Sydney over our Aus/NZ leg! We’ve also discussed the possibility of heading back to Argentina at some point too.

As a foot & final note to the Argentine chapter of “Tango Techie Tales”, I must state, for the record, that Argentine women are some of the most beautiful creatures on the planet - second only to the fantastic female friends that I am extremely lucky to have in my life!! (Phew - saved myself there!!) They are amazing (both my friends & Argentine women) & both Ric & I got sore necks from the constant looking!! We said nothing to any of them at any point, sure that our lack of dancing skills & highly undesirable bad Spanish would be our downfall… Then on the Sun as Caro was dropping us off at Pablo’s, she stated that in Argentina, you are able to walk up to a girl in the street and basically ask her out!! Any girl you deem attractive with no need to shout over loud music, buy a couple of drinks. A lot of Argentines meet & then date by just walking up to complete strangers in the street - it is apparently mainly done by guys but girls get guys to do it with ’looks’!!

Beware! Bald Blundell Boys running with packages!!

Obviously not enough research was done by either Ric or myself before entering Buenos!! But you do have to think, it is kind of romantic. I mean, how often have you seen someone you fancy in the street, let alone a bar, made definite eye contact & smiled, maybe even winked & then just walked on…?